PM 'CAPTIVE TO DRUGS YES-MEN': EXPERT

THE nation's pre-eminent expert on drug law reform, David Penington, has
accused John Howard of being captive to yes-men over his refusal to
countenance a heroin trial suggested by the National Crime Authority.

Professor Penington, who headed the former Kennett government's Drug
Advisory Council in Victoria, was responding to the Prime Minister's claim
that heroin trials had proved unsuccessful overseas.

Authority chairman Gary Crooke suggested on Wednesday that governments
consider prescribing heroin to addicts as part of a wider strategy to fight
the illegal drug trade.

The Government and other law enforcement agencies yesterday continued their
strident criticism of Mr Crooke, who claimed he was misunderstood.

But Labor, doctors, the Democrats and Greens said a trial should be
considered as part of the fight against heroin.

Professor Penington said Mr Howard was receiving advice "from people who
want to please his own ears, people who have no experience of the material
they are advising on".

"He only looks at facts which support that view and he's not in a position
to evaluate the detail of trials. He's surrounded by people who support his
views, so that what he's hearing is people expressing his views."

Mr Howard yesterday accused Mr Crooke of sending "a surrender signal" in
the National Crime Authority's war on drugs -- a suggestion angrily denied
by Mr Crooke.

"(Mr Crooke has) ignored progress which has been made, he's ignored the
fall in heroin-related deaths over the last seven or eight months," Mr
Howard said.

"The model to look to is Sweden, where after experimenting with what might
be called the more permissive approach, it went in the other direction and
it has achieved very considerable success."

Mr Howard was backed by Health Minister Michael Wooldridge and Treasurer
Peter Costello.

Mr Crooke yesterday wrote to South Australian Liberal senator Jeannie
Ferris -- a member of the parliamentary committee on the crime authority --
claiming he was not advocating a surrender in the fight against drugs.
"What I said at the press conference (on Wednesday) and in the (NCA)
commentary (on organised crime) most emphatically is that drug dealers must
be relentlessly pursued," Mr Crooke wrote.

Professor Penington said Switzerland and Holland had completed heroin
trials and "judged them to be highly successful and are implementing
programs based on them".

Sweden never had a heroin trial, only a program prescribing amphetamines 20
years ago, which was badly controlled, he said.

The ACT Government yesterday introduced legislation to allow a referendum
asking voters if they wanted a safe injecting room and a prescription
service for heroin addicts.